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Francia Raisa

Film and TV Actress; Best Known for "The Secret Life of the American Teenager"

As a Gracie Award and La Femme Film Festival Rising Star Award recipient, 2012 Teen Choice, IMAGEN and an ALMA award nominee for her portrayal of Adrian Lee on ABC Familys critically acclaimed series The Secret Life of an American Teenager, Francia Raisa continues to prove herself as a star on the rise. Francia was featured on the August 2012 cover of Backstage magazine as one of Young Hollywoods top Latinos in American TV and Film, further proving she is the one to watch.

Francia was born and raised in Southern California to mother Virginia Almendarez of Mexico and father Maximo Renan Almendarez Coello of Honduras, (one of the most recognized radio personalities and #1 Latino DJs in Los Angeles). At the age of five, Francia began taking dance lessons to learn all styles from tap to jazz, acrobatics, hip- hop and Polynesian. In addition to dance, she trained in karate and ice-skating. Looking to expand her talents her junior year of high school, Francia decided to study both acting and modeling. She started to get noticed, and soon began to model for print ads and national commercials. A month into her senior year of high school, Francia booked her first lead role, starring opposite Hayden Panettiere in Bring it On: All or Nothing.

Not long after wrapping Bring it On, Francia booked the lead female role of MGMs TV movie for ABC Family The Cutting Edge 3: Chasing the Dream, before ultimately landing her breakout role as Adrian Lee, a series regular ABC Familys award-winning The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Created by Brenda Hampton (7th Heaven), the program broke all records for an original series on the network, including taking the #1 spot in its time slot for cable TV when it premiered in summer of 2008. The show is currently on its final season, yet continues to be one of the most popular teen TV shows on air.

Up next, Francia will be seen on an upcoming episode of The Mindy Project, and she has been cast as a recurring player in The CW pilot The Company Town. Adding to an even more exciting year, Francia will star as Tory Bell in the ABC Family movie Christmas Bounty, produced by Michael Luisi (The Call) and WWE Studios. In addition to her success on television, the horror film Chastity Bites, in which Francia stars, is set to release later this year.

Francia currently resides in Los Angeles and continues to stay true to her dancing roots with weekly advanced classes at a dance studio in Hollywood. Francia strives to be a role model for all her female fans.

On her spare time, she works to raise awareness on important causes such as hunger, domestic violence, sex trafficking and female empowerment.

This Monday, Francia Raisa reprises her role as Adrian on of The Secret Life of the American Teenager. She took time off from her busy schedule to chat with J-14 about what to expect this season, her real-life friendships with the cast, and more!